In this section

SHEERING

Sheering lies immediately north-east of
Harlow, on the east bank of the river Stort, which
form the parish and county boundary with
Sawbridgeworth (Herts.). Pincey brook forms
most of the southern boundary and Hatfield
Heath road most of the northern. (fn. 1) The ancient
parish comprised 1,645 a. (666 ha.). (fn. 2) A detached
part of Matching, 1.5 a. near Wheeler's farm, was
transferred to Sheering in 1883. (fn. 3) Part of Harlow
was transferred to Sheering in 1955, increasing
the area to 1,869 a. (756 ha.). (fn. 4)

The terrain, which reaches a height of 76 m. in
the north-east, slopes down west to the Stort and
south to Pincey brook. A stream rising in the
north-east, near Quick Wood, flows west into the
Stort. Another, forming part of the eastern
boundary, flows south to join Pincey brook. The
soil is mainly boulder clay, with sand and gravel
in the Stort and Pincey valleys. (fn. 5)

In 1086 the total recorded population was 31. (fn. 6)
Sixteen men were assessed to the lay subsidy in
1327, and 24 in 1525. (fn. 7) There were 33 houses in
1670, and 42 ratepayers in 1758. (fn. 8) The population rose from 342 in 1801 to 547 in 1831, but
then remained static until after 1901. It rose from
664 in 1911 to 973 in 1931, 1,457 in 1961 and
1,969 in 1971. (fn. 9)

Mesolithic flints and late Bronze Age or Early
Iron Age pottery have been found in the southwest. (fn. 10) A Roman stone coffin was found in the
south, near Sheering Hall, and there is Roman
brick in the church. (fn. 11)

SHEERING 1980

Until the 20th century the main settlement was
Sheering village, which extends east and west
along the Street, north of the church. (fn. 12) Most of
the copyhold tenements which can be located
were in the Street, (fn. 13) which in 1769 consisted
'chiefly of mean houses built at a distance from
each other'. (fn. 14) It has been suggested that the rectangular ditches there were homestead moats, (fn. 15)
but it seems more likely that they were roadside
drains. They were apparently extended between
1840 and 1897, and many have been filled in
during the 20th century. (fn. 16) In the 18th and early
19th century some outbuildings in the Street
were converted into cottages. Development there
continued throughout the 19th century, as old
houses were divided or replaced, and new ones
were built between them. The roadside waste
was inclosed, and new building was extended east
to the parish boundary. (fn. 17) Replacement and infilling continued in the 20th century, and the
number of houses in the Street increased from 66
in 1840 to over 100 in 1980. (fn. 18) Before the Second
World War 14 council houses were built in
Primley Lane, north of the Street, and 115 more
were built between 1950 and 1965 along new
roads in the same area. (fn. 19)

There were at least six medieval farmhouses
outside the village: Sheering Hall at the south
end of Sheering Road, beside Pincey brook;
Aylmers and Newhouse in Sheering Lower
Road; Quickbury manor and Cowicks south of
Hatfield Heath Road; and Wheelers in High
Lane, south of Sheering bridge. Newhouse retains some of its medieval structure. The others
were later rebuilt. (fn. 20)

In the mid 19th century the building of the
railway, across the western side of the parish,
stimulated industrial growth at Lower Sheering,
near Sawbridgeworth station. (fn. 21) That was not at
first accompanied by much residential growth,
but by 1921 development had begun in Mill Lane
and Lower Road, (fn. 22) and since the Second World
War there has been much building between Mill
Lane and the railway.

The ancient road pattern, shown on 18thcentury maps, has survived with few changes. (fn. 23)
Hatfield Heath Road, which forms part of the
northern boundary of the parish, is part of the
main road from Sawbridgeworth to Chelmsford.
It is joined near Sawbridgeworth station by
Lower Road, from Harlow. Sheering Road,
which runs south-west in continuation of the
Street, joins Lower Road near Pincey brook.
Church Lane, leading to Matching, runs southeast from the Street by Sheering bridge to
Matching. The line of Lower Road, by Durrington House, was slightly altered in the mid 18th
century. (fn. 24) In 1845 Sheering Road, which then
passed near Durrington House, was diverted to a
more southerly course, farther from the house. (fn. 25)
A section of the London-Cambridge motorway, M11, completed in 1980, cuts through the
western side of the parish. During its construction Back Lane, which formerly linked Lower
Road and the Street, was severed. Its eastern end
was sealed off and its western end was diverted
southwards to join Sheering Road.

Sheering is approached from the south by two
bridges over Pincey brook. Ealing (formerly
Gildene) bridge, in Lower Road, recorded from
c. 1044, is described elsewhere. (fn. 26) Sheering
bridge, in Church Lane, maintained by the
parish in the 16th century, became a county
bridge in the late 19th century. (fn. 27) A bridge over
the Stort was in 1627 the responsibility of the
miller of Sheering mill. (fn. 28) It was probably replaced by a new one over the Stort Navigation
when that was made in 1769. (fn. 29) The canal bridge
was taken over in 1911 by Epping rural district
council from the Lee Conservancy. It became
a county bridge c. 1929. (fn. 30)

By 1741 Lower Road and Sheering Road were
both used by coaches running north and east
from Harlow. (fn. 31) In the later 18th century the
improvement of the turnpike road from Harlow
via Sawbridgeworth and Hockerill (Herts.) probably diverted north-south traffic from Sheering. (fn. 32) In the 1820s and 1830s only the daily coach
from London to Dunmow and carriers between
Hatfield Broad Oak and London passed through
Sheering. (fn. 33) The Northern and Eastern railway
from London reached Harlow in 1841 and was
extended to Sawbridgeworth and Bishop's Stortford in 1842. (fn. 34) Sheering village is 6 km. northeast of Harlow Mill station and 2 km. south-east
of Sawbridgeworth station.

The oldest surviving building, apart from the
church, is Newhouse Farm, Lower Road, which
retains its late medieval plan of a hall with two
cross wings, and has much of the original timberframing, including a crown post roof. A chimney
and an upper floor were put into the hall in the
early 17th century, and about the same time a
service wing was added on the east. Lamberts, in
the Street, recorded in 1584, (fn. 35) has a main range
and cross wing of the late 16th or early 17th
century. Two low pavilions were built on the
south front c. 1905 by the novelist Elinor Glyn,
who set up her 'Petit Trianon' in the western
pavilion. (fn. 36) The pavilions were converted into
flats c. 1970. (fn. 37)

Chambers Farm, in the Street, is a 17thcentury timber-framed house, apparently renovated in 1769. (fn. 38) Cowicks, Hatfield Heath Road,
probably takes its name from the family of John
Cowick, recorded in 1276. (fn. 39) It is a timber-framed
building of the 17th century, much altered and
enlarged, with maltings at the west end of its
service wing. There are traces of a moat to east
and west. The manor houses are described
below. (fn. 40) Wheelers, High Lane, rebuilt c. 1830,
retains part of its medieval moat to the east. It
was probably named from the family of John the
Wheeler (fl. 1354). (fn. 41)

There were two inns in 1755, the Crown and
the Cock. (fn. 42) At that time the Crown may have
been the building now called Crown House, the
Street, which dates from the 18th century, but by
1809 the sign had been transferred to a house
on the present site at the corner of Back Lane and
the Street. (fn. 43) The present building may be of
18th-century origin, but was much altered and
enlarged in the 19th century. The Cock, also in
the Street, is a timber-framed building of 18thcentury origin. The Railway inn, near Sawbridgeworth station, had been built by 1861. (fn. 44)
The Queen's Head, in the Street, existed as a
beerhouse by 1871. (fn. 45)

Mains water was brought to the parish in 1920,
gas in 1933, electricity in 1938, and main drainage in 1953. A village hall, built in the Street in
1930, was burnt down in 1971 and rebuilt in
1974. A playing field, north of the hall, was
bought by the parish council in 1921. Another
was given to the council in 1966 by Walter
Lawrence Ltd. (fn. 46)

Manors.

The Manor Of SHEERING HALL, or
lying in the south, was held
in 1066 by three men as 5 hides and 30 a., and
in 1086 by Peter de Valognes in demesne. (fn. 47) It
descended with the honor of Benington or
Valognes until that was divided among coheirs
in 1235. Sheering then fell to the share of
Christine, wife of Peter de Maule. (fn. 48) In 1290
Christine granted the manor to her kinsman
Robert FitzWalter, Lord FitzWalter (d. 1326). (fn. 49)
FitzWalter in 1294 leased Sheering to Ralph of
Coggeshall for two years, and in 1295 confirmed
the lease for life. (fn. 50) The lease may have been
acquired by Thomas de Lovaine (d. 1345), who
in 1314 held the manor in right of his wife Joan
(d. 1318). Lovaine presented to the manorial
chapel in 1322 and was one of the principal
taxpayers in Sheering in 1327. (fn. 51)

Sheering descended like Roydon Hall in the
FitzWalter family until 1505. It subsequently
remained with the Radcliffes, earls of Sussex, (fn. 52)
until 1617, when Robert Radcliffe, earl of Sussex,
sold it to Sir Lionel Cranfield, later earl of
Middlesex, owner of the adjacent Pishiobury
estate in Sawbridgeworth. (fn. 53) Cranfield sold the
manor in 1635 to (Sir) Thomas Hewett (Bt.). (fn. 54)
Sir Thomas was succeeded in 1662 by his son Sir
George Hewett, Bt., later Viscount Hewett, who
died unmarried in 1689. Lord Hewett's estates
were divided among his four sisters, of whom
Elizabeth, wife of Sir Richard Anderson, received
most of the Sheering property, comprising 360 a.
Lady Anderson, by her will proved 1698, directed
that the manor should be sold, and that the
proceeds should be put in trust for her husband
for life, with reversion to her grandchildren. In
1699 a sale was arranged with Thomas Filmer of
the Inner Temple (Mdx.), but both he and
Anderson died before the conveyance was completed, and the transaction dragged on until
1706, when the estate passed by Chancery order
to Filmer's daughters, Mary and Susan, wife of
Robert Eddowes. Mary and Susan sold Sheering
in 1718 to Robert Chester, a director of the South
Sea Company, who later acquired other property
in Sheering that had formed part of the Hewett
estate before 1689. (fn. 55)

Robert Chester forfeited his estate as a result of
the South Sea Bubble, and Sheering was sold in
1725 to Samuel Feake (d. 1757), chairman of the
East India Company. (fn. 56) The manor passed to
Samuel Feake (d. 1774), son of the last, whose
heirs were his sisters Anne and Mary. Anne
Feake married Jonathan Cruse, and died in 1800,
leaving her share to him and his heirs, on condition that they took the name of Feake. (fn. 57) He died
in 1818 leaving three children by a later marriage:
John, Jane, who married Thomas Sanford, and
Anne, who married Philip Martin. Mary Feake
died unmarried in 1803, leaving her share to
Amelia Hollingbury and Amelia's daughter
Henrietta, wife of Thomas Glyn. Henrietta was
succeeded by her son Thomas C. Glyn (d. 1860)
who in 1844 bought the Feakes' share of the
manor. Sheering passed to Clayton W. F. Glyn
(d. 1887). (fn. 58) His son Clayton L. Glyn lived
extravagantly and mortgaged the estate. Durrington House and Sheering Hall had apparently
been sold by 1908, when C. L. Glyn was rescued
from bankruptcy by his wife Elinor, the novelist.
They had lived at Durrington House from their
marriage in 1892, moving in 1895 to Sheering
Hall and later to Lamberts. He died in 1915, and
in 1918 Elinor conveyed the manor to their
daughters Margot and Juliet. (fn. 59) The estate was
sold and broken up c. 1924. (fn. 60)

Sheering Hall, which was the manor house
until the 18th century, stands south of Sheering
Road, near Ealing bridge. The site was once
moated. (fn. 61) The central section of the south-west
front was probably built in the early 17th century. It is timber-framed, jettied along part of
each side, and has an unusually high ground
floor. There is an 18th-century service wing to
the north-east. Two timber-framed, thatched,
and weatherboarded barns standing north of the
house date from the 17th or the 18th century. (fn. 62)

Durrington House, Lower Road, became the
residence of the lord of the manor in the time of
Samuel Feake (d. 1757), who remodelled it. (fn. 63)
The south range dates from the early 17th century, but appears to have been refaced early in the
18th century. The west range was added in the
mid 18th century. It has a fine front with central
pediment, canted bays to the ground floor, and
recessed Venetian windows to the first floor. The
staircase and some service rooms, which occupied the angle between the ranges, appear to have
been altered c. 1860 when additions were made
on the east side. A small park was formed c.
1845. (fn. 64) Durrington House continued to be the
manor house until 1892 or later. (fn. 65) It was the
home of Sir Harry Goschen from c. 1906 until his
death in 1945. (fn. 66)

The manor of QUICKBURY or COWICKBURY, which lay in the north, was in 1066 held
by Alwin Godtuna as 3 hides. In 1086 it was
held of William de Warenne by Richard. (fn. 67) The
tenancy in chief descended with the earldom of
Surrey until 1314, and passed to Aymer de
Valence, earl of Pembroke, who died holding it in
1324. (fn. 68) It was held by Edmund, duke of Kent,
who was executed in 1330, and descended to
Thomas de Holand, earl of Kent (d. 1397). The
earldom became extinct in 1408 on the death of
Thomas's son Edmund de Holand, and when
Thomas's wife Alice died in 1416 her lands were
taken into the king's hands. (fn. 69)

In 1098 Richard Guet apparently subinfeudated the manor to Bermondsey priory, later
abbey (Surr.). He may have been identical with
Richard who was tenant in 1086. (fn. 70) Richard's
mesne tenancy passed with Housham in Matching to Ralph de Assartis, who in 1241 confirmed
Richard's grant, but changed the terms to tenure
in free alms. The abbey's freedom from knight
service was later disputed, but was confirmed
c. 1257 by Ralph de Arderne and his wife Erneburga. In 1274 the abbey leased Quickbury,
along with Monkbury in Little Hallingbury, to
Adam de Stratton, the fraudulent chief baron of
the Exchequer, who was attainted in 1290. His
lands were forfeited to the Crown and in the same
year were restored to the abbey. (fn. 71) Bermondsey
abbey held Quickbury until the Dissolution.

In 1540 the manor was bought from the Crown
by Thomas Josselyn of High Roding. (fn. 72) Josselyn
sold it in 1557 to Robert Hurst of Sawbridgeworth. (fn. 73) Hurst was succeeded in 1583 by his
brother Roger (d. 1587). (fn. 74) Thomas Hurst,
Roger's son, died in 1618, and in 1621 Thomas's
son, another Roger, sold the manor to John Poole
and his wife Anne. She married Sir John Ramsden in 1633 and William Childers in 1654.
In 1657 Childers sold the manor to Abraham
Cullen, a London merchant. It passed in succession to Abraham's brothers, Sir John (d. 1677)
and Rushout Cullen, who sold it in 1715 to David
Petty (fl. 1734), a London merchant. Petty's heir
was his daughter Elizabeth. She married George
Carpenter, later Lord Carpenter (d. 1748), whose
heir was his son George, Lord Carpenter, later
earl of Tyrconnell (d. 1762). (fn. 75) George, earl of
Tyrconnell (d. 1805), sold the manor c. 1788 to
George Parris, whose family had leased it from c.
1745. (fn. 76) Parris still held Quickbury in 1790, but
by 1817 it had been sold to the Revd. Thomas
Mills. (fn. 77) In 1840 the manor, comprising 328 a.,
was held by Mrs. Esther Mills. (fn. 78) The Revd.
Thomas Mills, son of the previous Thomas, died
holding Quickbury in 1857. His heir was his son
Thomas Charles Mills. (fn. 79) The lordship remained
in the Mills family until the early 20th century. (fn. 80)
In 1934 the farm was bought by Robert Watt,
whose son of the same name held it as 220 a. in
1980. (fn. 81)

Quickbury manor house lies south of Hatfield
Heath Road. It was built in the late 16th or early
17th century, and has a staircase, roof, and doors
of the late 17th century. The house was enlarged
and cased in brick in the 19th century. There is
a 17th-century barn north of the house. (fn. 82)

The manor of SHEERING or HUTTONS or
AYLMERS lay in the south-west, near Ealing
bridge. It originated as a free tenement of 60 a.
which in 1241 was granted by the lords of
Sheering Hall manor to Ralph Gobion. Thomas
Aylmer, who was holding it in 1427, was succeeded c. 1429 by his infant son William. (fn. 83) In
1465 William Aylmer sold it to Thomas Colte. (fn. 84)
It descended in the Colte family with Nether
Hall in Roydon until 1606, when George Colte
sold it to John and George Kempe. (fn. 85) In 1609 John
Kempe sold Aylmers to Lawrence Coldham.
It descended to Lawrence's great-grandson
Mortlock Coldham, and later passed, in 1777, to
Mortlock's great-nephews George Howland and
Thomas Paterson. Paterson surrendered his
share in 1779 to Howland, who was succeeded
c. 1798 by his nephew Sir George Howland
Beaumont. In 1805 Beaumont sold Aylmers with
90 a. to Thomas Glyn, joint lord of Sheering Hall
manor. (fn. 86) Aylmers passed with the Sheering Hall
estate until that was broken up.

Aylmers house stands in Lower Road, on a site
which was formerly moated. (fn. 87) It is a timberframed building of the early 17th century, with a
central chimney and stair turret. A later 17thcentury service room against the north-west
corner probably replaces an earlier building.
North of the house is a timber-framed barn,
probably of the early 17th century.

Economic History

The Domesday
figures suggest that both manors, though small,
were economically vigorous. In 1066 and 1086
Sheering manor had five demesne ploughteams
and one belonging to the tenants. There were
32 a. of meadow, woodland for 100 swine, and
a mill. The recorded population was 14 in 1066
(3 free men, 3 bordars, 8 serfs), and 17 in 1086
(3 villeins, 6 bordars, 8 serfs). There were 8 cows
with calves in 1066, but none in 1086; 35 sheep in
1066 and 84 in 1086; 16 swine in 1066 and 56 in
1086; 1 rouncey in 1066 and 2 in 1086, with an ass
and a mule. Three hives of bees had been added
by 1086. Quickbury manor had two demesne
ploughteams, a mill, and 20 a. of meadow at both
dates. The recorded population was 12 in 1066
(7 villeins, 5 serfs), and 14 in 1086 (6 villeins,
6 bordars, 2 serfs). By 1086 the tenants' teams
had declined from 3½ to 3, the number of sheep
had grown from 47 to 52, and there were two
colts. (fn. 88) The proportion of bordars and serfs was
unusually high for Essex. The increasing number
of bordars, sheep, and swine, may well indicate
a pioneering enterprise like forest clearance.

In the 14th and 15th centuries the centre of the
parish was occupied by open fields, fringed by
common meadows along the river Stort to the
west and Pincey brook to the south, and woodland on the higher ground to the east and north.
The extensive open fields included Malland
(Manland, Mallions), between Lower Road and
the Stort; Westfield, between Lower and Sheering Roads, Hall and Church commons south of
the Street, and Reading common on the eastern
boundary. Longlands was between the Street
and Back Lane. Primley lay north of Back Lane,
and probably adjoined Great Barkfield, which
was bounded west by Lower Road. Pincey common was in the south-west corner of the parish.
Common meadows included Broadmead, Cowlese, Forelese, Oxlese, and Soggemarsh. (fn. 89) Oxlese
probably lay between Pincey brook and Sheering
Hall. (fn. 90) The exact location of the other common
meadows is not known.

Sheering was less densely wooded in 1086 than
most parishes in the hundred. In 1362 Sheering
Hall manor contained 20 a. of demesne woodland. (fn. 91) It probably lay east of Sheering Hall,
where Woodfield, also 20 a., was recorded in
1840. (fn. 92) Sheering wood, 'the great wood' in 1414,
was 'newly cut' in 1431, and by 1464 was
pasture. (fn. 93) Quickbury manor had some woodland,
though none was recorded in Domesday, for in
1275 a woodward was appointed. (fn. 94) Quick wood,
comprising 10 a., still survives near the northeastern boundary of the parish, and is protected
by a preservation order of 1950. (fn. 95) North of it, in
1840, lay Little Woodfield. (fn. 96) To the south lay
Reading (Reden) common, which seems from its
name to have been a forest clearing. (fn. 97) In southwest Essex such areas were usually inclosed after
clearance, or became common waste, and it is
remarkable that Reading became an open field.
In 1279 Christine de Maule was exchanging
parcels of land there. (fn. 98)

Inclosure of the open fields proceeded slowly,
though it seems to have begun at an early date.
Part of Westfield was inclosed when Newhouse
farm was established, probably in the later
Middle Ages, and by 1775 it had been reduced
from 108 a. or more to 36 a. (fn. 99) Much of Aylmers
farm had been inclosed by c. 1600. (fn. 100) The prefix
'shet' or 'shut', as in Shet Malland (1742) and
Shut Hall field (1840), seems to indicate partial
inclosure. (fn. 101) In 1840 there still remained in the
parish 125 a. of open fields, lying in Church, Hall,
Longlands, Pincey, Primley, Reading, and Mallions commons. By then all the strips in Pincey
and Mallions were held by the same man, and
many of those in the other commons had also
been consolidated. (fn. 102) No commons were recorded
in 1865. (fn. 103)

Labour services worth 34s. 8d. were in 1362
being performed on Sheering Hall manor, but
paid labour was also being used. (fn. 104) Some summer
and winter works were still being performed
there in 1431. (fn. 105) The tenants of the manor paid
ungeld, a kind of tallage, until 1508 or later. In
1587–8 the copyholders claimed the right to let
their houses for three years without licence, and
to use timber growing on their lands for house
repair. Their letting rights were restricted in
1597, when the manor court forbade copyholders
to let houses without licence to persons living
outside the manor. At the same time the court
resolved to put hedge-breakers in the stocks as
well as fining them. (fn. 106) Copyholders' subtenants
were apparently identified as hedge-breakers, as
they were at Roydon in 1604. (fn. 107) The copyholders
of Quickbury in 1583 claimed the rights to have
a pound, to let their tenements for three years
without licence, and to use timber on their lands
for house repairs and firewood. In 1676 they
repeated those claims, adding the right to a bull
and a boar. (fn. 108)

Christine de Valognes had a warren and a
fishery at Sheering Hall by 1275. (fn. 109) In 1519 the
lord's fishery was well stocked with pike, and
there was also a common fishery. In the 15th
century the manor had a dovehouse, and the
warren was stocked with hares and rabbits. (fn. 110)
There was a fishpond at Quickbury (later Sheering) mill c. 1280. (fn. 111) Quickbury manor had fishponds c. 1650. (fn. 112)

The demesne of Sheering Hall manor in 1362
comprised 354 a. of arable and 20 a. of woodland,
but no meadow or pasture. (fn. 113) In 1587 it comprised
276 a. of arable and 97 a. of meadow and
pasture. (fn. 114) The whole parish was in 1838 estimated to comprise 1,236 a. of arable, 260 a. of
meadow and pasture, and 16 a. of woodland. (fn. 115)

There was a hopyard at Cowicks farm in 1601. (fn. 118)
In the early 1770s Quickbury manor had an acre
of osiers, and in 1792 there was a five-acre field of
saffron at Chambers farm, in the Street. (fn. 119) Keith
Luxford Ltd., nurserymen, originated c. 1919
when Luxford took over an existing nursery in
Back Lane. The firm later moved to Sheering
Mill Lane, where a mail order business was
established. Chrysanthemums were grown there
until 1968. From that year the nursery grew
house plants, and in 1980 it had 2 a. under glass. (fn. 120)

Although arable farming seems always to have
predominated, sheep farming was important
in Sheering by 1377, when 197 fleeces were
exported to Hatfield Broad Oak. (fn. 121) Sheering Hall
manor contained a sheepcot in 1408. (fn. 122) In 1591
one farmer had 100 sheep. (fn. 123) Among animals
listed in 1866 were 175 sheep, 171 pigs, and
103 cattle. In 1906 there were 164 cattle, 37 pigs,
but no sheep. The 1926 returns listed 254 cattle,
45 sheep, 51 horses, and 47 pigs. (fn. 124) Those for 1977
listed 715 pigs, 424 cattle, 15,700 poultry, but
no sheep. (fn. 125)

In 1840 there were five farms of 50–100a., four
of 100–200 a., and two, Quickbury and Sheering
Hall, of over 200 a. (fn. 126) A few years earlier Peter
Pavitt, then tenant of Sheering Hall, had been
commended for good management, and especially for the luxuriance of his arable crops. (fn. 127) In
1977 there were only five farms, apart from
smallholdings. Three had between 40 and 50 ha.,
one between 50 and 100 ha., and one between 100
and 200 ha. (fn. 128)

Sheering Hall water-mill had no stones in
1362. (fn. 129) It was apparently burnt down c. 1401 and
later rebuilt, but in 1431 it was ruinous. (fn. 130) Its
location is not known. Quickbury water-mill,
later called Sheering mill, passed with Quickbury
manor to Bermondsey priory, which in 1241
granted privileges there to the mesne lord, Ralph
de Assartis. (fn. 131) Later in the 13th century the mill
passed to Walter of the mill, who sold it with 2½a.
of meadow and its fishpond to Adam de Stratton,
lessee of Quickbury, for the large sum of 50
marks. (fn. 132) By 1553 it was a fulling mill. (fn. 133) It may
have been converted to fulling soon after 1437,
when it was acquired by John Leventhorpe. (fn. 134) He
was probably John Leventhorpe (d. 1484), a large
sheep farmer at Wennington and Sawbridgeworth. (fn. 135) The fulling mill remained in the
Leventhorpe family until it was sold to Daniel
Cramphorne c. 1629. Joseph Cramphorne died
holding it in 1706. (fn. 136) It was used as a corn mill
by James Pynings (1713–34), Andrew Little
(1734–75), and in the 1840s by John Barnard,
whose family retained it until 1866 or later. (fn. 137) It
had been demolished by 1907. (fn. 138) The mill house
still stands beside the Stort in Mill Lane. It is
a timber-framed building of the 17th century,
refronted in the 19th century. (fn. 139)

In the late 16th century £10 4s., more than
a tenth, of the rent of Sheering Hall manor
was paid in malt. (fn. 140) In 1754 Sheering's output of
7,405 qrs. of malt was second only to that of
Saffron Walden among parishes in the area. (fn. 141)
A malthouse at Cowicks, owned in 1601 by
Thomas Duke, remained in use until 1848 or
later. (fn. 142) Seventeenth-century maltings and an
18th-century kiln survived in 1980. By 1601 John
Duke had acquired Bushes, Hatfield Heath
Road, where he or his successors built Duke's
malting. (fn. 143) Richard Godfrey was maltster there
in 1734. (fn. 144) By 1861 John Barnard had acquired
Duke's malting, and had built two more. (fn. 145) It is
not known how long Duke's malting remained
in use. In 1876 William Barnard had maltings
farther west, near Sawbridgeworth railway
station. Barnard & Co. merged in 1886 with H. A.
& D. Taylor, and from 1887 traded under
Taylor's name. New maltings were added c.
1896, and in 1908 the company built a factory to
make malt extract. Taylors were taken over in
1958 by A.B.M. Malting Ltd. In 1980 two of the
seven 19th-century maltings were still in use. (fn. 146)
Another malting house, at Collins, in the Street,
was recorded in 1725 and 1804. (fn. 147)

Walter Lawrence Trading Ltd., door manufacturers, Sheering Mill Lane, originated in
1907, when Walter Lawrence opened joinery
works there to serve his Waltham Abbey building
firm. In 1972 Lawrence House was built in Sun
Lane, off Mill Lane, as the headquarters of the
Lawrence group of companies. (fn. 148) F. J. Crow &
Sons, Lower Road, builders and sand and ballast
hauliers, were established in the 1930s, and Jack
White & Co., in the Street, builders' merchants
and fencing manufacturers, in 1956. (fn. 149)

Local Government.

It was stated in
1274–5 that Christine de Maule had view of
frankpledge and the assize of bread and of ale
in Sheering manor, while Bermondsey priory
had the same liberties in Quickbury manor, and
also claimed bourghselver (tithing money). (fn. 150) The
lord of Sheering manor in 1386–7 had the right
of gallows. (fn. 151)

Rolls of Sheering Hall courts leet and baron
survive for 61 years in the period 1370–1508, and
for the years 1558, 1565, 1580, 1584–8, and
1594–1606. There are records of regular courts
baron for the periods 1721–3 and 1739–72, and of
occasional courts baron between 1784 and 1923,
with ten courts leet held between 1776 and
1809. (fn. 152) The leet usually appointed two constables until 1606 or later, and two aletasters until
c. 1407. A hayward was occasionally recorded in
the Middle Ages. In 1408 two men were elected
to the office. The court was mainly concerned
with trespass by cattle and pigs, hedge-breaking,
drainage, and the maintenance of Ealing bridge.
During the 15th century there were a few cases of
poaching in the lord's warren and in his fishery.

In the later 13th century, when Adam de
Stratton leased Quickbury from Bermondsey
priory, a joint court leet was held for that manor
and Monkbury in Little Hallingbury. (fn. 153) The
surviving rolls of Quickbury record 25 courts
between 1546 and 1649. Of those only 10 were
courts leet, and none included the election of
officers. There are records of a few courts baron
for the periods 1692–1753 and 1775–88. (fn. 154) The
courts leet were especially concerned with the
maintenance of hedges. In the 1580s copyholders'
rights were stated, tenants were presented for not
wearing caps of English wool according to the
statute of 1571, (fn. 155) and three men were presented
for not practising at the butts.

Parish vestry minutes survive for the period
1680–1797. (fn. 156) The vestry met once a year, usually
at Easter, until 1712, after which it also met
regularly in December and held two or three
other meetings during the year. The numbers
signing the minutes varied between four and ten,
headed by the rector or curate when present, and
at other times by a churchwarden. Edward
Hinton, rector 1712–45, attended regularly
between 1719 and 1744. His successors Samuel
Payne, 1745–54, and Richard Hinde, 1754–78,
often attended.

The vestry appointed two churchwardens,
except during the years 1724–64, when there was
usually only one, chosen by the rector. A warden
usually served for several successive years. There
were two overseers of the poor except for the
years 1773–9, when there was only one. There
is evidence of a rota system for overseers in
the years 1715–32, and during that period two
widows served, apparently in place of their
husbands. The vestry usually appointed two
constables until 1735, but later only one. The
constable's election was also recorded on the
Sheering Hall court rolls between 1776 and 1801.
James Cavill, wheelwright, held the office from
1767 to 1801. A salaried vestry clerk was appointed from 1708 or earlier. There were two
surveyors of highways.

The annual cost of poor relief rose from £3 11s.
in 1682 to £8 15s. 4d. in 1707. In 1715 it reached
a peak of £45, and in the 1730s it averaged £50.
In 1740 the poor rate reached £64, and in the
following year the vestry warned idle youths to
find employment. In the early 1780s the average
cost of relief was about £170. It was £481 in 1813
and £325 in 1815. There is no record of a poorhouse or workhouse, except in the early 18th
century, when Church House seems to have been
used for the poor. Outside relief included weekly
pensions, boarding allowances, grants of fuel
or clothing, apprenticeships for children, and
occasional medical care.

Church.

Architectural evidence suggests that
there was a church in the 12th century. The
advowson of the rectory descended with Sheering Hall manor until 1689. (fn. 158) In 1691 it was
divided among Sir George Hewett's four sisters,
Arabella, Lady Wiseman, Elizabeth, wife of Sir
Richard Anderson, Margaret, wife of Sir Edward
Farmer, and Mary, widow of Sir Charles CroftsRead. (fn. 159) They sold it in 1693 to John Hutcher and
Richard Harris. (fn. 160) The advowson later passed to
Thomas Jordan and his wife, from whom it was
bought in 1699 by Christ Church, Oxford, with
money left to the college by John Fell (d. 1686),
dean and bishop of Oxford. It has remained with
Christ Church since then. (fn. 161)

The rectory was valued at 15 marks in 1254,
when Bermondsey priory retained the small tithes
from the demesne of Quickbury, and £6 13s. 4d.
in 1291, when Bermondsey's portion was £2. (fn. 162)
The value of the rectory was £13 13s. 4d. in 1535,
and £80 in 1650. (fn. 163) Tithes were a source of dispute between Leonard Solme, rector 1572–1613,
and his parishioners. (fn. 164) There were further disputes in the 1750s when Richard Hinde, rector
1754–78, tried to extort higher tithe payments. (fn. 165)
The tithes were commuted in 1840 for £509. (fn. 166)
There were some 26 a. of glebe in 1650, and 23 a.
in 1840. (fn. 167) Parts of the glebe were used to extend
the churchyard in 1867 and 1917. (fn. 168) In 1956 only
10 a. of glebe remained. (fn. 169)

The Rectory house, south of the church, was
sold in 1952, when a new Rectory was built on the
glebe, north of the church. (fn. 170) The Old Rectory
contains 17th-century fragments in the timberframed walling in the kitchen and in a chimney on
the south front. The south-west corner of the
house was remodelled c. 1770 by the rector,
Richard Hinde. (fn. 171) Edward Brown, rector 1824–
44, refronted the house and added spacious
rooms at the east end in Tudor Gothic style:
between 1835 and 1837 he spent £1,000 on the
house. (fn. 172)

Rectors' names are recorded from 1316. (fn. 173)
During the Middle Ages few remained for more
than five years. From the mid 15th century
many of them were pluralists. Among those was
Leonard Solme, who was said c. 1585 to be a
'hunter and gamester' who did not preach, and
Stephen Withers, rector from 1613. (fn. 174) Withers, a
fervent Royalist, was sequestrated in 1643 and
was imprisoned. (fn. 175) John Ward, who was instituted c. 1649, after Withers's death, conformed
in 1662. Edward Hinton, rector 1712–45, Samuel
Payne, 1745–54, and Richard Hinde, 1754–78,
were all resident. (fn. 176) Francis Tutte, 1778–1824,
was in 1796 granted a dispensation, on strict
conditions, to hold Sheering in plurality with
Henham. (fn. 177) For much of his long incumbency
Sheering seems to have been served by curates. (fn. 178)

The church of ST. MARY THE VIRGIN is
built of flint rubble with some Roman and early
medieval brick. It has a chancel with north vestry
and organ chamber, nave with north aisle, south
porch, and embattled west tower with pyramidal
roof. Fragments of 12th-century diaper work
formerly noted in the church suggest that the
church already existed then. (fn. 179) The tower and the
west wall of the nave date from the late 13th
century. The nave and chancel were largely
rebuilt in the late 14th century, when the twostoreyed north vestry and the south porch were
added. The chancel roof and the brick parapet
of the tower are probably of the 16th century.
A timber staircase was put into the tower in the
17th century.

In 1855 the church was restored and fitted with
open pews. (fn. 180) A further restoration was carried
out c. 1875, when a triple chancel arch was
built. (fn. 181) Herbert Williams, rector 1900–36, in
1903 added the north aisle and organ chamber,
designed by G. E. Pritchett, as a memorial to
Canon Edward Hill, rector 1849–1900. At the
same time two galleries were removed from the
nave. (fn. 182) The south porch was restored in 1905 and
the tower in 1906. (fn. 183) The east window tracery
contains 14th-century glass depicting the
coronation of the Virgin. (fn. 184) A window in the tower,
designed by John Hayward in 1974, portrays St.
Nicholas, to whom the free chapel (below) was
dedicated. The 12th-century font, formerly in
pieces, has been restored. The rector's stall,
repaired and replaced in the chancel c. 1924, has
carved and painted heads of c. 1400 on the arms.
It was one of a number of similar stalls noted in
the church c. 1710. (fn. 185)

There are four bells, including two of 1619. (fn. 186)
The plate includes a silver cup and paten of
1561. (fn. 187) There is a brass to Robert Hurst (d. 1583),
and an armorial marble floor slab to Richard
Sayer (d. 1711), rector, and his wife.

Church House, adjoining the church, is said to
have been given as an endowment for church
repairs. In 1713 it was let to the parish overseers
for 6s. 8d. a year, probably as a poorhouse. From
c. 1725 the rent of £1 6s. 8d. was paid to the vestry
clerk. In 1734 the vestry proposed to move the
house to a more convenient site. (fn. 188) No more is
known of it.

The free chapel of ST. NICHOLAS, which
stood in the courtyard of Sheering Hall, was
founded in 1275 by Christine de Maule, lady of
the manor, who endowed it with a house, 42 a.
of land, and 5s. annual rent in Sheering, and
£11 6s. 8d. annual rent from lands in Norfolk, to
maintain two chaplains. The house, which was
moated and had a grove of trees, stood 200 m.
north-west of Sheering Hall. (fn. 189) The advowson of
the chapel passed with Sheering Hall manor. (fn. 190)
There seems usually to have been only one chaplain. (fn. 191) In 1535 the chapel was valued at £4 13s. 4d.
a year. (fn. 192) By 1548, when it was dissolved, it was
said to be worth only 42s. a year. (fn. 193) The chapel
was granted in that year to Walter Farr and Ralph
Standish. (fn. 194) The chapel and the house have not
survived, but the rectangular moat remains.

Nonconformity

In 1709 the house of
Henry Hank was licensed for Baptist meetings. (fn. 195)
Later in the 18th century Sheering Baptists
probably attended Fore Street chapel, Harlow, as
the Hank family did in 1765. (fn. 196) An evangelist, the
Revd. Samuel Organe, who in 1886 was living
at Crown House, in the Street, may have been
connected with the cottage mission started before
1890, apparently by Methodists. (fn. 197) In 1891 the
North West Essex Methodists mission bought a
wooden chapel, probably to replace the cottage,
and in 1901 bought four cottages in Sheering. (fn. 198)
The mission survived in 1911 and there was a
mission room in the Street until 1915 or later. (fn. 199)

Education.

Sheering Church of England
primary school, in the Street, appears to have
originated in 1816, when the rector, Francis
Tutte, gave £100 in trust to teach 12 poor girls
of Sheering to read, spell, and sew. (fn. 200) In 1819 a
school with 16 girls was being maintained by
Tutte's gift and subscriptions. (fn. 201) By 1827 it was
a National day and Sunday school with 15 boys
and 35 girls. (fn. 202) In 1835 the annual income of
£3 13s. 6d. from Tutte's gift was being paid to the
schoolmistress. Of 45 children who were then
being taught free 30 were girls, more than 12 of
whom were nominated by the rector. (fn. 203) About
1851 a new National school for 54 children was
built in the Street. (fn. 204) It was enlarged in 1874 and
received annual government grants from 1880. (fn. 205)
The school was damaged by bombing in 1941. (fn. 206)
In 1954 it was reorganized for juniors and
infants, and was granted Controlled status. (fn. 207) It
was enlarged in 1966. (fn. 208) By a Board of Education
order of 1905 the income of £2 12s. 4d. from
Tutte's gift was to provide prizes for girls proficient in needlework and religious knowledge. (fn. 209)
Nothing was known of the charity in 1979.
Sheering has benefited from Fawbert and
Barnard's school, Harlow, founded in 1836, and
the Tom Parkin educational charity, Harlow,
founded in 1977. (fn. 210)

Charities for the Poor.

There are no
surviving charities for the poor. It was said c.
1680 that land in Hall Common field was charged
with 6s. 8d. rent for the poor, and attempts were
to be made to trace its origin. In the 18th century
the income was being received regularly, and it
was used to give firewood to the poor until 1797
or later. (fn. 211) No more is known of it.